Author: divinefish

On Wednesday, June 13, 2018 we delivered 1000 pieces of catfish fingerlings to a brand new catfish farmer around Sango Ota, Ogun State. The new farmer is an enterprising young man who graduated from university in 2016. His parents’ house has unused piece of land at the backyard and he decided to construct two concrete ponds on it and begin catfish farming.

The farmer engaged us to supply fingerlings and offer consultancy services to him as he grows the fish to maturity and sales so that he gets it right at his first attempt.

Supplying the fingerlings involved selecting the fish at our farm, putting them in a container, transporting to the customer location and introducing them into the customer’s ponds. Prior to the day of delivery we had advised the farmer to prepare the pond for his new fingerlings.

On arrival at the farm we ensured that the water condition in the pond was good to receive the fish before pouring the fish into their new habitat. It was an exciting experience for the young farmer and those around him.

Our promise to our new partner is to support his catfish farming business with our wealth of experience so that he gets it right the first time. Our support began with supplying him with a good set of fingerlings and we are willing to support him through growth, marketing and ultimately profitability.

A good benchmark for budget planning to grow catfish is estimating the cost required to feed the fish till they reach market size. I recommend that every fish farmer does this at the beginning of a fish growing cycle.

When feeding of catfish is done optimally, 1000 kilogrammes (kg) of feed will convert to 1000 kilogrammes of catfish flesh.

Method

You can choose to grow 1000 kg of catfish by:

Growing 3000 pieces of catfish juveniles to average mass of 330 grammes in 3 months; or

2000 pieces of juveniles to average mass of 500 grammes in 4 months; or

1000 pieces of juveniles to average mass of 1 kg in 6 months.

Whichever method you choose from above, it is recommended that you grow with floating feed to 50% of body mass and complete with sinking feed for the remaining 50% of body mass.

The period from December to mid-February is a time when tomatoes are relatively cheap and in plenty supply in the major markets around Nigeria.

Tomatoes are used in many households to prepare paste and stews for delicacies like white rice, jollof rice, white yam, porridge, soups and many others meals. If you are a tomato lover you might want to extend your enjoyment of sumptuous tomato stews beyond the season of plenty into the season when it is in short supply.

You can preserve your blended tomatoes to last for more than a month without putting it in a refrigerator or warming it regularly by following the steps below:

Wash your fresh tomatoes to your taste.

Pour it in a pot and add little salt and water. Steam it for just three minutes.

Remove all tomatoes from water and blend it.

Boil your blended tomatoes to allow its water content to evaporate to your taste. (It is advisable to let it thicken.)

Pour the tomato paste into a container made of glass which you can cover very well (e.g. an empty mayonnaise glass container with cover). Close the glass container very well.

Put your tomato paste in covered glass container inside a pot with little water and heat for two minutes to warm the glass container and its content.

Now you can store your tomato paste wherever you want.

You are advised to consume your tomato paste within 6 weeks.

This method comes in handy if you want to buy tomato in bulk cheaply and consume it little by little over 6 weeks.

Oh, you can also order your smoked and dried catfish from Divine Fish Farm which will also retain its great taste and nutritional value after 6 weeks. Dried catfish gives stews a distinct traditional taste.

We can deliver catfish fingerlings or juveniles of the hetero-clarias (hybrid) specie to you anywhere in Nigeria from Lagos State.

The prices of catfish fingerlings and juveniles as of November, 2017 are:

SN

Quantity

Fingerlings (4 weeks)

Juveniles (8 weeks)

1

0 – 5,000 pieces

N25.00 per fish

N35.00 per fish

2

5,001 – 10,000 pieces

N20.00 per fish

N30.00 per fish

3

10,000 and above

N15.00 per fish

N25.00 per fish

Procedure to order your catfish fingerlings and juveniles

The first step is to call 08077776861 to confirm the availability of fingerlings.

If you want fingerlings (4 weeks old catfish) and they are available they can be packaged and shipped to you within three (3) working days after payment has been made for them.

If you want juveniles (8 weeks old catfish) then you will first call to confirm for the availability of fingerlings. If fingerlings are available then you will book for them. This means you pay for them. On our part we will feed them and take good care of them till they grow to juvenile stage after 3 – 4 weeks.

You can monitor the progress of growth of your fish within this period. When the fish have reached juvenile stage we will package them for you and send them by night through a reliable transport company. You can then pick the fish up at the transporter’s motor park the following morning.

The event discussed how farming can be done at home using everyday materials and innovative techniques to grow green healthy foods and vegetables.

Through smart farming agricultural productivity can be increased while agricultural wastage can be drastically reduced. The need for every hand to contribute to food sufficiency in Nigeria cannot be overemphasised.

Techniques of growing food discussed at the seminar include:

Soil-based farming;

Soil-less culture;

Hydroponics;

Aquaculture;

Aquaponics;

Design of hydroponics and aquaponics units;

Fish in aquaponics;

Hydroponics and aquaponics plants;

Plant propagation; and

Plant growth requirement.

It was a day of learning that attracted over 50 farmers and farming enthusiasts from Lagos and surrounding states. Our take-away from the event was how to use the waste water from our fish ponds, which is rich in ammonia (a source of nitrogen), to fertilize our vegetable garden. Hopefully this will help improve our water management and increase our vegetable yield.

The smart farm seminar was organised by PS Nutrac, a company committed to improved production of healthy foods using innovative techniques.

Processing catfish using firewood and charcoal fuelled oven gives the fish a unique taste that is reminicent of traditional home cooking. The process is meticulous and it results in smoked and dried catfish that attracts premium price from discerning consumers.

What you need:

50 kilogrammes (kg) of live catfish

500 grammes (g) of table salt

Two sacks

Two large plastic basins/bowls and trays

A brick oven (powered by firewood and charcoal)

Two bundles of firewood

One sack of charcoal

Water

Knife or razor blades

Soap

Day 1

Killing;

Washing;

Degutting;

Smoking;

Day 2 – Drying

Day 3 – Drying

Day 4 – Drying

You can enroll for a practical hands on training course with us at our farm. Alternatively, you can purchase an e-copy of our detailed instruction manual with photos to guide you on catfish processing. Contact us if you are interested in learning how to add value to fresh catfish by processing it.

The exhibition was organised by the YouWiN! programme to support the growth of beneficiary businesses and connect them to local and international markets with the added aim of expanding their reach as well as taking their businesses to the next level.

During the two-day exhibition products and services were showcased from priority sectors across the six geo-political zones of Nigeria. Products from agriculture, household items, furniture and fixtures, electrical equipment, fashion, jewellery, gifts, accessories, apparel, textiles, chemicals, industrial goods, building materials and equipment were exhibited.

Many people from across Nigeria visited the trade exhibition. Officials from government departments and agencies like the Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF), National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and Nigeria Export Promotion Council (NEPC) were part of discussion panel sessions at the event. Other discussion panel sessions at the exhibition were composed of entrepreneurs, industry and professional associations, industry captains, local and international investors and the general public.

The objectives of the exhibition were:

Foster networking among YouWiN! beneficiaries and other entrepreneurs;

Promote the creation and growth of indigenous industries and enterprises;

Network local enterprises with business opportunities at the international level;

Present a platform for business and industry innovators to showcase and possibly collaborate;

The YouWiN! ‘Made in Nigeria’ Trade Exhibition was organised with support from The World Bank, Growth and Employment (GEM) Project, YouWiN! Partner Banks, Development Partners (DFID and affiliates), Small Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) and Corporate organisations.

The Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria (YouWiN!) is a collaboration between the Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF), the Federal Ministry for Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Federal Ministry of Women Affairs, Federal Ministry of Youth Development, the World Bank and the organised private sector. The objective of YouWiN! is to create jobs by encouraging and supporting entrepreneurship through innovation. The programme provides financing, capacity building and mentoring to young entrepreneurs in Nigeria.

Credit: 1st YouWiN ‘Made in Nigeria’ Exhibition event programme.

Ugochukwu Ukwuegbu
For Divine Fish Farm

Event Pictures:

Discussion panel by captains of industryDiscussion panel by representavies of government departments and agenciesDiscussion panel by representatives from government department and agenciesAffordable Royal Custard Powder on exhibitCross-view of the exhibition hallBeautiful craftwork on exhibit by Mitimeth

On Thursday, 15th November, we were at Agro-Ignite, one of the Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) 2016 conferences, organised by Enterprise Development Centre (EDC), Lagos.

The need for Agro-Ignite was borne by the current economic downturn in Nigeria, particularly with the fall in the oil sector. The organisers thought the event was timely as agriculture is being repositioned as a key driver of the economy in Nigeria. The conference was targeted at young entrepreneurs engaged in agriculture business (agribusiness) and those contemplating getting into one agriculture business or the other.

Panels at the conference discussed the opportunities in Nigeria in the agribusiness chain from production through transportation to markets and factories for sales and processing, to the point it gets to the table or hands of the final consumer. The challenges of engaging in agribusiness were discussed. Ideas on ways to overcome the challenges were shared.

Also discussed was access to funds, the funding institutions like Bank of Industry (BOI), Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and commercial banks, and the types of funding available to agriculture entrepreneurs in Nigeria. Representatives from Diamond Bank Plc. and BOI were around to share good information on funding at Agro-Ignite.

Farmers, food processors and marketers from existing agribusinesses in Nigeria shared their experiences during the panel discussions.

Divine Fish Farm benefited from the information shared at the event and from networking with other stakeholders in the Nigeria agriculture industry. Divine Fish Farm grows catfish, processes it, markets it and sells it to customers in Lagos and Ogun States in Nigeria and in the United States of America (USA).

The sponsors include British American Tobacco Nigeria Foundation (BATNF) and Diamond Bank Plc. The host was Enterprise Development Centre, Pan-Atlantic University, KM 22, Lekki-Epe Expressway, Ajah, Lagos. The event held at Four Points by Sheraton, Victoria Island, Lagos.